Afternoon Tea
by Blue Arrow
Summary: James and Lily take a break from work and go out for some afternoon tea. Little do they know, someone else has different plans for them in mind.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own it.

This is going to be my first story that isn't a one-shot; I hope you all like it. Please review!

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Afternoon Tea

**Chapter 1**

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**James looked up from his desk as an owl swooped into his cubicle, dropping a letter in his now cold coffee. He picked up the letter and shaking it dry, noticed it was from Lily. He smiled and opened it, 

**James,**

**How about we haveafternoon teaat the muggle place on the corner? It's a nice day out and they have some tables outside where we can sit. Do you want to?**

**Love,**

**Lily**

He quickly scrawled a reply saying that he would meet her there in 10 minutes. After finishing up some paperwork, he balled up a piece of scrap paper and threw it over to the next cubical.

"Wanker."a disgruntled voice replied.

James smirked; he had obviously hit his mark.

"I'm going out to tea with Lily, I'll be back in about 45."

Sirius's head appeared above the wall of the cubical, wearing a grin.

"Oh, the wife-to-be you mean? Well, tell dear Lilykins that I said hi. Oh and Prongsie?" Sirius said as James was getting up to leave, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"Asshole."

Sirius laughed and waved James good-bye. James signed out and sauntered outside of the Ministry of Magic towards the cozy muggle restaurant on the corner. He saw Lily waiting for him and walked up to her.

"Hey Lils."

She smiled, "Hey. How's your day so far?"

They went inside to order their food, talking quietly about their days up to that point. After they ordered, Lily picked a place for them to sit down outside. James pulled out Lily's chair for her and she slipped into it. He began to push her chair in when it happened. They felt a jerk behind their navel and were lifted off their feet. They sped in a whirlwind of colors, finally landing roughly on a hard forest floor.

At one look of their surroundings, James and Lily both immediately pulled out their wands; they were surrounded by Death Eaters. Right in front of them, standing tall and leering menacingly was Lord Voldemort himself.

"James Potter. And Lily Evans, too. How nice of you to . . . drop in." he smirked and began looking them up and down. He immediately noticed the flash of gold on Lily's left hand. "Is that a ring I see on your finger, Mudblood? Potter, I didn't think you had it in you to stoop so low."

James growled, "You leave her out of this, we both know it's me you want."

"Quite right, Potter. However, what better way to get what I want from you than to use the Mudblood?"

Before James could do anything, Voldemort sent the Cruciatus curse straight at Lily. Lily, however, was expecting this.

"_Protego!_"

Her shielding charm was so strong it deflected the spell right back to Voldemort, who moved out of the way almost lazily.

"Cute, Evans. Really adorable. I'm afraid that just won't do, though. No, it simply won't suffice."

Voldemort nodded to a death eater, who sent a spell at James causing him to be tightly bound with ropes.

"You, Potter, get to watch while I rid the world of one more mudblood; then, perhaps, you will tell me what I want to know."

Lily sent a curse at Voldemort and they began dueling fiercely, Voldemort looking somewhat surprised at Lily's obvious talent and skill. James looked around for inspiration, something, anything to help. He finally spotted his wand lying three feet to his left side. The idiotic death eaters hadn't picked it up when he was tied.

James stretched out his left leg after making sure everyone's attention was on Lily and Voldemort.

'Just a bit more… just... a little ... YES!'

James quickly brought his leg up to the rest of his body dragging his wand with it. Voldemort spotted what James was doing and let out a yell. He screamed a curse at Lily and she fell to her knees, blood spilling from a huge gash on her chest. He turned onto James, but was too late.

"_Impedimenta!_"

James's impediment curse was so powerful that it not only stopped Voldemort, but some of his death eaters as well. The rest of the death eaters looked on in awe.

James rushed over to Lily, pulling her into his arms. The death eaters started to recover from their shock and began to send curses at them. James stood up, ready to fight. He began sending stunning curses and anything else that came to mind, but there were simply too many of them. The impediment curse he had cast was starting to wear off. He was running out of options, and he knew it. But he would be damned if he was going to show it. He would be damned if he was going to let them, the very scum of the earth, know that he, James Potter, was scared. With renewed vigor, he sent a particularly nasty curse towards the death eaters. Four more were taken down, only a handful to go.

James cast a disillusionment charm on himself quickly. Moving slowly so the remaining death eaters could not see where he was, he grabbed hold of Lily's wrists, checking for a pulse. He breathed a huge breath of relief; it was there, stronger than he expected. He cast the disillusionment charm on Lily as well.

"WHERE ARE THEY?"

The Impediment curse had worn off. James cursed under his breath, wondering how in the hell they were going to get out of this. He thought of Sirius who thinking that he was just out totea. _Sirius!_ James and he _always_ had their mirrors with them.

"_Muffliato!_"

The Death Eaters and Voldemort's ears were filled with a buzzing sound so they couldn't hear James talking to Sirius.

"I know you're still here Potter! You can't hide for long!"

James quietly talked into his mirror.

"Padfoot! Padfoot! Sirius, for the love of Merlin, answer!"

Sirius's face finally appeared in the mirror.

"What's up Prongsie?"

Voldemort screamed, "Show yourself and face me like a man, Potter! You have nothing to lose; I daresay the Mudblood is slowly nearing death."

Sirius's eyes widened.

"That's what's up, asshole, I need help! There's too many of them! I have no fucking clue where the hell we are, in some dark forest. Lily's lost a lot of blood, she's unconscious. He says he's using her to get me to do what he wants. I have a disillusionment charm on us both, but I can't get out of this alone, Sirius!"

"I'll get help. And James-"

James cut him off, knowing he was going to say some kind of goodbye in case the worst happened. He wasn't going to let Sirius voice aloud what they both feared.

"Just hurry mate."

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Hope you enjoyed the first chapter, I'm off to edit the second one. At the least, this will be four chapters long. I may write more, I'm not quite sure yet. Please review, It would mean alot to me!

- Blue Arrow


	2. Chapter 2

Hey guys - here's chapter 2! Hopefully it's a little better than the first chapter, I realize that it really had some weak points. Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: Not mine! JKR's!

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Afternoon Tea:

_**Chapter 2**_

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Sirius put his mirror into his front robe pocket, muttering a sticking charm to make sure he didn't lose it, as James and Lily's lives may be dependent on it. He sprinted out of his cubical and ran down the hallway, knocking into people as he went.

"What the hell, Black!" yelled an offended witch whom he had just run into.

"Sorry!" yelled Sirius over his shoulder as he kept running past cubicles. As he ran past, people's heads popped up to see what all the noise was about. After dodging witches, wizards, and the occasional owl, he finally reached the large oak door at the end of the room. He pounded on it so hard the wall shook.

"MOODY!"

Sirius heard a clanking noise and then quick footsteps before the door flung open.

"What is going _on_ Black?" Mad-eye exclaimed, looking slightly ruffled.

"It's James and Lily; they went out to tea at a muggle place on the corner. Chair was a portkey. They're in some forest with a bunch of death eaters and Voldemort."

"I'll call the Order. You get to the headquarters and wait."

Sirius nodded and immediately traveled to headquarters.

"POTTER! It will not take long for me to find you; it will be easier for you if you show yourself now!"

James slowly stood up, keeping the Disillusionment charm on him.

"_STUPEFY!_" he screamed at Voldemort, who ducked out of the way just in time.

Voldemort sneered.

"I knew you were still here Potter. Oh, but where's that mudblood girlfriend of yours?"

"You're not going anywhere near her. I won't let you," came a voice about 50 feet from directly in front of Voldemort.

"Didn't stop me last time, did you? Not very good husband material, are you? If there was any possibility of her living past tonight, I must say she would have broken off the engagement."

Voldemort was trying to place guilt on James, trying to make him weaker. James, who knew that Voldemort often used such tactics against 'fools who love,' knew what he was trying to do, and it made him furious.

James screamed a curse that hit its target, causing Voldemort to be thrown up in the air with a powerful force. He landed against a tree and a sickening crack echoed through the forest. He seemed to be knocked out, but James didn't know for how long. The death eaters were at a loss as to what to do without their master there. This wasn't part of the plan.

James quickly grabbed Lily and cradling her in his arms ran as fast as he could.

At headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, Sirius was filling everyone in on what little information James had told him. Every member of the Order that could be there was present. They were assembled in a circle on some chairs. Closest to the door was Frank Longbottom, followed by Alice Longbottom. Next to her were Fabian and Gideon Prewett, in that order. Following Gideon was Remus Lupin, Albus Dumbledore, Alastor Moody, and finally, Sirius Black. A fire crackled in the grate, casting moving shadows on the wall. The light from the fire reflected in Sirius's eyes as he determinately tried to come up with a way to save his friends.

"But how are we supposed to help him if we don't know where he _is_, Sirius?" Remus said exasperatedly.

"I have an idea…"

Everyone looked at Sirius.

"Well, James said that Voldemort is using Lily so James will do what he wants him to do. He said that they were located deep in a forest. It's been known that Voldemort has wanted to take control of Hogwarts. Isn't it possible that they are far in the Forbidden Forest?"

Someone made a sound of disbelief.

"No, listen. James knows how to get around that school better than almost anyone. You all know the crap we pulled while we were at Hogwarts. There's not enough time to explain everything, but we found several secret passageways inside and outside of the castle. My guess is that one of the death eaters who is close to James have divulged that he knows ways to get in and out of the castle undetected."

"That could be it, Sirius." Dumbledore said.

"It certainly does make sense" Frank Longbottom spoke up.

"Yes, well that's all fine and dandy, but have you been to the Forbidden Forest lately, Sirius? It spans for miles. How are we supposed to locate them?" Gideon Prewitt asked.

"For starters, they aren't in Hogwarts grounds. They don't show up on the map."

"Map?" questioned Alice.

Remus answered instead of Sirius, "James, Sirius, Peter and I made up a map while at school covering the entire grounds of Hogwarts. It gives the location of everyone in the grounds."

Dumbledore's eyes, despite the situation, twinkled merrily, "I supposed you four had some way to sneak about undetected besides James's invisibility cloak."

Remus and Sirius smiled briefly before Dumbledore continued.

"Yes, well, we must get underway; I understand that Lily's losing a lot of blood. We know they aren't on Hogwarts grounds, so we start by looking otherwise. I recommend we break into groups and sweep over the tops of the trees on broomsticks. Disillusionment charms on each of us, of course."

"Red sparks if you find them, or the death eaters. Don't stay in the same spot once you have sent up the red sparks. Stay in the general area, but keep moving. Less of a chance of you getting hit by a curse if the wrong people spot the sparks." Moody spoke up this time.

"It's settled then. Let's go." Sirius said with a very serious and determined look on his face.

James pulled out his mirror as he ran through the thick forest, dodging branches and ducking through bushes. He quickly glanced over his shoulder and seeing no one following him, threw himself and Lily behind a tree. Now was a brief chance to contact Sirius again.

"Padfoot! Padfoot!"

"James, is Lily ok?"

"Still unconscious. Got away from them so far. Running north. I think I'm in the forbidden forest."

"That's what we think too. We're sweeping the forest; you're not on Hogwarts grounds. Keep your eye out for red sparks, then stay in that general area. That's the signal that we've found you."

"Right. Meanwhile I keep running." James looked a little guilty.

Sirius knew what was going through his best friends mind.

"You stay alive." He said firmly. "You can't take that many of them, James. You're not a coward."

"Right. See you Sirius."

"Soon, Prongs."

James stuffed his mirror back into his pocket and breathed deeply. He took off the Disillusionment charm on himself so he could be spotted by members of the Order.

"He's got to be here somewhere! He has the mudblood; he can't travel magically with her!"

'SHIT!' James tucked Lily's head further into his chest and took off running again. He felt her stir.

"… J-James? What's going on?"

"Shhh... they're right behind us Lily. It'll be fine."

"I'm so tired, James." Lily was too weak from blood loss to completely register what James was saying. All she knew was that she was tired and she wanted to sleep for ages, maybe even forever. . .

"I know baby, just hold on." James whispered gently.

"Let's rest a minute, please?"

"We can't Lily. Keep your eyes open, don't fall asleep again." He knew that if she fell asleep once more, she would probably never wake up.

"But I'm so tired. Just a nap. . ."

"Lily you have to stay awake. Just stay awake love, keep talking to me."

James murmured another Muffliato spell so the death eaters wouldn't hear Lily if they got near enough.

James glanced at the sky, looking for any sign of red sparks. He furrowed his brow, then turned his attention back to his fiancé in his arms. She was deathly pale and had long lost the ability to think clearly. Suddenly James tripped on a protruding tree root.

"Shit!"

His foot was stuck in the root.

"_Diffindo!"_

The root cut in half, but not in time.

"Well, well, well, Potter. Tried to get away? How foolish of you, I must say."


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for the reviews so far guys- I love them. Here's Chapter 3 - enjoy! and please review!**

Disclaimer: JKR's characters, places, and ideas.

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_**Previously:** "Well, well, well, Potter. Tried to get away? How foolish of you, I must say."_

Afternoon Tea: Chapter 3

James closed his eyes and took a deep breath, pushing his fear back. He gently let go of Lily and stood up in front of where she lay, facing Voldemort defiantly. The fact that the Order was on its way gave him new confidence.

"Let's just get this over with. What the hell do you want, Tom?"

Voldemort glared at him for using his real name.

"I want information from you Potter -"

James cut him off, "And peoplein Azkaban want happiness."he said in a sarcastic tone.He continued more seriously,"I won't tell you anything."

Voldemort narrowed his eyes, "You dare to interrupt me, Potter? And with a smart remark too? Clearly, the time has come for me to teach you toshowrespect toLord Voldemort. _Crucio!_"

James dodged the curse and threw one back in turn, which Voldemort deflected.

James and Voldemort stopped and stood defiantly, glaring at each other, wands out, calculating their next moves. The death eaters looked on, having previous orders to do nothing unless told otherwise. Suddenly Voldemort pulled back his wand.

"_Serpensortia!_" A huge snake shot out of his wand, landing right in front of James. Immediately it reared up in the striking position. James began to say a spell to vanish the snake, but he wasn't quick enough. The serpent struck full force and sank its fangs into James's right leg. James let out a cry, then forcefully flicked his wand at the snake yelling, "_Evanesco!_"

As soon as the snake was gone, James collapsed on the ground in pain. He tried to get up but found that he was now unable to support his leg. He lifted his head to look up at Voldemort and waited for him to mutter the curse that would end it all. Instead Voldemort curled his lips into an evil smile and took a step closer to James.

"Hurts, doesn't it, Potter? The snake was venomous; you will be dead within the hour. Now, since you have no chance at all of coming out of this, I will tell you what I want to know. You will oblige and give me any information I request of you." He paused here to let his words sink in before continuing.

"As I am sure you suspect, for quite some time now I have wanted control of Hogwarts. However, every single entrance is guarded. I know from very reliable sources that you have knowledge of several secret passageways leading to the school that Dumbledore himself doesn't know about. I need those passageways, Potter. You will tell me where and how to find them."

James glared at Voldemort, showing more hatred than he had ever shown or even felt before. Then he spoke, slowly.

"First of all, _Tom_, I would never divulge any information to you whatsoever. Second, even if I did tell you, there are other enchantments that have been put on the school to guard against you. I have no clue what they are; let alone how to get past them. So you see, my information would be pointless even if I did give it to you."

"Nevertheless Potter, you will give me that information."

"Over my dead body." James said deliberately, putting emphasis on each of his words.

"I assure you, that _will_ be arranged. But first, a little fun. _CRUCIO!_"

James had never felt anything so horrendously painful in his life. It felt as if millions of hot knives were piercing every millimeter of his skin. All he could think about was that he wanted it to end; he didn't care how. It was so painful he wasn't even aware that the screams he heard were coming from him. Neither he nor Voldemort noticed the red sparks overhead.

Frank Longbottom was flying low over the tree tops when he heard someone let out a scream filled with agony. 'James!' he thought. He sped towards the scream, and looking frantically though the branches, spotted James writhing on the ground with a dark figure standing over him. Frank immediately sent up red sparks.

Sirius saw a flash of red out of the corner of his eye. He quickly looked up and spotting the sparks, flew towards them. Hecaught upwithFrank, and heard the others flying over as well.

"Alright, everyone. This is it. On the count of three, send down a stunning spell. Land ready to fight straight away." Sirius said.

"Do not worry about hitting James; I'll place a shielding charm on him when you all send down the stunning curse." Dumbledore said.

Everyone nodded.

Moody started counting,

"One…. two . . . three!"

"_STUPEFY!_"

The night was lit up by a mass of red lights streaming down into the trees, stunning all but a handful of death eaters and Voldemort. The members of the Order then flew down into the forest, sending curses to the remaining Death Eaters as they went. Voldemort took the Cruciatus curse off of James when he spotted Dumbledore.

"Dumbledore. Come to save your favorite students?"

"Indeed. It is not wise to linger any longer, Tom. You are quite outnumbered now."

"Even so . . ." Voldemort sent a curse at Dumbledore who reflected it with ease.

"Come now, Tom. Even you can see that you will not win tonight."

"Oh but I have. Evans is almost certainly dead by now, and Potter not soon after."

Dumbledore's eyes flashed dangerously.

"Leave, Tom. You can not get what you came here for tonight."

By this time, the other members of the Order had taken down any remaining Death Eaters. Voldemort noticed he was completely alone.

"This is not the end, Dumbledore. You will see."

With that, he turned his cloak about him and disappeared.

Dumbledore turned around.

"Where is Lil -"

He stopped in mid sentence. Lily was lying on the ground completely white. Someone had obviously taken off the disillusionment charm. James had her head gently cradled in his lap. Tears were falling unchecked down his cheeks. He looked up at Dumbledore.

"She – she's so _cold_." whispered James.

"She has a pulse; we need to get her to St. Mungo's, Dumbledore. James too, he said he was bit by a _Serpensortia_ snake." Remus said.

Dumbledore spoke quickly and sharply, "Sirius, take her on your broom. James is too weak to support both himself and Lily while flying. I'll take James. Only Remus is to follow. No one else visit unless told to do so by me, Sirius, or Remus. Too suspicious if we all show up."

Everyone nodded weakly. Sirius gently picked up Lily in his arms, mounted his broom, and sped off into the night. Remus closely followed. Dumbledore walked over to James and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You're coming on my broom. Let's go." James nodded numbly and Dumbledore helped him onto his feet. With his former headmaster's aid, James limped to Dumbledore's broom and mounted it, completely physically and emotionally exhausted.

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**So, there it is. A little shorter than the other chapters, hopefully it was still good though. Next chapter coming in about 2 or 3 days hopefully. Please please please press that little button down there and review!**

**love you all!**

**- Blue Arrow**


	4. Chapter 4

Hey guys!

Here's chapter four, hope you like it. Please please please please please review!

Disclaimer: JKR's stuff.

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Afternoon Tea: 

Chapter 4

It had been three hours since they reached the Hospital. Three hours of waiting and wondering. Three agonizing, tantalizing hours of sitting in uncomfortable chairs, looking up at any flash of lime green, hoping it was a healer coming with news. Hopefully good news.

"Merlin those two better be alright," Sirius breathed, blinking back tears.

Remus nodded and kept silent, not trusting his voice to function at that moment. They had heard no news about either Lily or James. Although Lily looked worse than James at first, it became apparent as they traveled to St. Mungo's that James wasn't exactly well off. The venom started creeping its way towards his upper body. Remus had quickly said a spell to constrict blood flow from his leg in hopes of keeping the poison from spreading past that appendage. He didn't know if it worked or not.

By the time they had reached St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, James looked horrible and was ready to pass out on Dumbledore's broom. He collapsed onto the floor once they made it into thereception area. Healers immediately swarmed around him, one conjuring up a stretcher to transport him quickly to a room.

They had taken Lily away to a room also. She was still unconscious and the healers weren't sure if she would be alright or not. Remus and Sirius were the only ones in the waiting room; Dumbledore had gone back to headquarters. He would be updated by Remus and Sirius there, and would in turn inform the other members of The Order on James and Lily's conditions.

The two Marauders, as they still called themselves occasionally, looked up sharply as the door to the waiting room burst open. The healer that it revealed walked briskly over to them.

"How is he?" Sirius asked urgently.

"Mr. Potter is progressing nicely," the healer said with a smile on his face, "Not enough poison reached his heart to cause any serious damage. He will, of course, have to take it easy for quite a while, but we expect him to pull through just fine."

Remus and Sirius let out huge breaths of relief. Sirius leaned back into his chair with his hands over his face; Remus leaned forward and put his head in his hands. A sudden thought occurred to him.

"Is Lily ok?"

The healer's expression changed immediately.

"I will not give you false hope: Miss. Evans's condition is worsening. We are doing everything we can, but she has lost a dangerously high amount of blood. She is likely to go into a comatose state soon. Once she does, we are powerless. We can do nothing but wait."

Remus nodded and Sirius looked ready to cry again. He pushed back his tears and asked when they would be able to see James.

"You can go there now, he should be awake soon- and no, you can't see Lily. We will tell you when you may see her."

Sirius thanked the healer and stood up to walk to James's room, Remus following serenely.

"How is she?" asked James.

He had woken up about 45 minutes after Sirius and Remus had entered his room. His first thought once he had bearings on his surroundings was of Lily and her condition. When he was asleep, a healer had come in to update Remus and Sirius once more on how Lily was doing. The news was not promising and neither friend wanted to be the one to inform James that his beloved Lily might not make it through the night.

"How is she?" James asked again when neither Sirius nor Remus answered.

"James …" Sirius began uncertainly, but then stopped.

"_How is she?_ Why won't you tell me? She's alright, isn't she?"

This time Remus spoke, "James… she's – she's slipped into a coma."

James just looked at Remus, expecting him to take back what he said and announce that Lily was just outside the door waiting for him. When he saw that Remus made no move to speak, James did instead.

"How-" James stopped to clear his throat. "How long will she be in it?"

"They don't know. They said that she might, oh God James, she might not make it through the night" Remus answered, his voice breaking as he finished speaking. Sirius took over as James just looked at them, willing himself to believe that his friends were lying to him, that it wasn't possible that his Lily wasn't going to be ok.

"They said that tonight she will turn one way or the other. She's being watched closely, there is always at least one healer in the room with her."

James laid his head back on his pillow with his hands over his face. Sirius leaned over and grasped his shoulder.

"She'll be fine, Prongs. She's strong, you know that. She'll fight this all the way."

James just nodded.

"When do you think they'll let me see her?"

"Well, Mr. Potter," came a voice from the doorway, "Since you have improved nicely, I'm going to move you into her room. Company can help speed the healing process. Although she is unconscious, it has been proven that some comatose patients can still hear what is going on around them." The healer looked kindly at James.

James smiled and visibly relaxed, happy that he would finally get to see her.

The healer tapped James's bed with her wand. It rose off the ground a few inches and started floating towards the doorway and over to Lily's room. Once they entered her room James noticed that the curtains around her bed were closed.

"If you want we can open her curtains so you can see her."

James nodded and the healer opened the curtains surrounding Lily's bed. He took in a sharp breath when he saw how bad she looked. Although the cuts and scrapes she had gotten from James running through the forest were completely mended and her bruises gone, her skin was a dark grayish color. She had even darker circles under her eyes and her chest was wrapped in white bandages.

"We've mended the gash on her chest completely. The cut was extremely deep, however. Her chest will be sore for awhile and it will hurt for her to breathe deeply, which is why the bandages are on. They will prevent her from taking too large of breaths and from feeling pain." The healer stopped for a moment to recheck Lily's vital signs before continuing.

"She has lost a lot of blood;that is something we cannot fix. It will take time for her body to make up the blood that was lost. That is why she hasn't yet awaken; her body is devoting all of its energy to replenishing its blood supply. Tonight is crucial. She will turn one way or the other. All we can do is monitor her closely and wait. We've set alarms to go off if there is any change. This way, you can have some alone time with her.There are always healers close by. If you need anything, just step out of the room and flag down someone." The healer looked James up and down.

"In fact, a short walk would be good for you; just don't overdo it," She added.

James thanked the healer as she left the room, then turned his attention towards Lily. Sirius and Remus left, letting him have some private time with her. James slowly got up out of his bed and dragged a chair to the head of Lily's. He sat down and leaned over, brushing Lily's hair off her face with his hand. He gently placed a kiss on her forehead and grasped her hand in his.

"Lil's, you were awesome. You were so strong." He looked away for a moment to gather himself. He took a deep breath and looked back at Lily. She looked so peaceful, despite her appearance. He shifted his chair closer and leaned down so they were nose to nose. His eyes roved over her face as he stroked her hair.

"Lily. I need you to do something for me. I need you to be strong again so you can come out of this. I need you to fight this for me, for you. I _need_ you Lil's, more than anything. Please, stay strong baby, come out of this. I know you can."

James kissed her cheek and very gently leaned his head on her shoulder for a few moments, not wanting to hurt her. After one last kiss on her neck, he pulled back when he heard someone knocking on the closed door.

"Come in," he called.

Sirius walked in looking tired.

"Remus and I are going to stay at my place so you can contact us quicker if you need to. We both need rest, and you do too."

"Ok, I'll call you if there's any change."

Sirius nodded, "James, lie down and go to sleep. She's not going anywhere. She'll be fine."

James sighed and giving Lily's hand a squeeze, rose up out of his chair and went over to his own bed.

"See you later, Siri."

"Night Prongs."

As soon as Sirius closed the door, James got up again and sat back down on the chair next to Lily's bed. He knew Sirius was worried about him, but he, James, was worried about Lily. He grasped her hand in his once more and stroked her hair for awhile longer, just looking at her. Keeping her hand in his, he withdrew his other hand from her hair. He took his glasses off and placed them on Lily's bedside table. Leaning back into his chair and closing his eyes, he slowly drifted into a restless sleep.

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James woke up to a high pitched beep going off. He heard running and the door to the room slammed open, bombarding him with bright white light. Clumsily, he reached for his glasses and putting them on, opened his eyes. There were three healers surrounding Lily's bed. James quickly sat up straighter. 

"What's wrong? What's happened?"

"Her blood pressure is dropping fast. You're going to have to leave the room." One of the healers answered him.

"What? Why? Is she going to be-?"

"I do not know, Mr. Potter. Please go wait outside." The healer directed him towards a waiting lobby and told him someone would be along to update him on Lily's condition. Meanwhile, more healers were running down the hall to Lily's room.

James had never felt more helpless in his entire life. He ran his hands over his face and sat down on a bright blue chair in the lobby. He remembered that there was a small owlry down the hall for visitors and patients to use as needed and walked down to send an express letter to Sirius and Remus. Not ten minutes later he saw his two best friends bursting into the lobby, breathing heavily. Jamesstarted to greet them but found that his voice didn't seem to be working properly. Remus was the first to say something.

"Is she ok James?"

"I – I don't know." His voice broke for the first time since he and Lily had landed in that hell hole of a forest. He let out a sob and buried his face in his hands, his whole body shaking in emotional anguish. Sirius, not used to seeing his best friend like this, didn't quite know what to do. Remus rushed forward and grabbed James by theshoulders, pulling him out of the chair. He envoloped him into a tight hug. James clung to him, all thoughts of manliness gone as he sobbed into Remus's shoulder unrestrainedly. Sirius walked up behind James and placed a hand on his shoulder. Remus tightened his grip on James, letting him get everything that had happened to him since yesterday afternoon out.

"What – what if she doesn't make it?" James sobbed even harder.

Sirius's hand clenched tighter on James's shoulder.

"Don't say that James. She is going to make it. Lily doesn't just give up on things, you know that. She's going to fight it with every fiber of her being."

"But what if it's not enough, Sirius? What if -"

"That's enough, James." This time Remus spoke. "Stop thinking that. Stop saying it. She's going to be ok."

James nodded, clenching his jaw, trying to stop himself from crying anymore. After a few minutes, he pulled away from Remus and sat back down in his chair, trying to look like everything was ok again but failing miserably. His eyes were red and bloodshot with dark circles underneath them and had an empty look to them. Sirius and Remus sat on either side of James, ready to offer support when needed. The three friends kept quiet for a half hour, each waiting and wondering. Sirius's stomach decided to break the tense silence with a loud growl. Remus let out a breath of a laugh and James's lips quirked up in a miniscule smile.

"There's a cafeteria down the hall and to your left, Padfoot." James said.

"Thanks mate." Sirius jumped up and started to leave the lobby but stopped and turned around.

"Do you want me to get you anything?"

"No, I'm fine." James answered.

"I don't need anything either." Remus said.

Sirius shrugged his shoulders and left for the cafeteria.

"Is he ever _not_ hungry?" Remus asked exasperatedly.

"I think Snape cursed him with a bottomless stomach or something end of fifth year."

Remus laughed and then both friends fell into silence, thinking about Lily. Sirius returned a few minutes later with some muffins, agenerous amount of bagels, and three large cups of coffee.

"I know you three said you didn't want anything, but James you haven't eaten since Merlin knows when and Remus hasn't either. And I think we all need some caffeine."

Remus and James nodded, taking the food from Sirius. Sirius tore into his muffin, Remus picked at his bagel and James sipped some coffee.

"Mr. Potter?"

James looked up so fast that he spilled coffee on his lap. He hardly noticed, his mind was focusing on one thing, and that was his Lily.

"Yes?" he asked with baited breath.

"We've gotten Lily stabilized; she has made a turn- for the better. She's going to be just fine."

James let out a huge breath, "Oh God…" he sat down, shaking like a huge weight had just been lifted off of him.

"She gave us quite a scare there for a moment, but she put up a fight. She should be awake within the next day or so. Herbody still needs quite abit of rest.You may go back to the room with her."

James nodded and thanked the healer sincerely as he left.

Sirius turned to James, "See?"

James laughed, feeling elated. "Yeah. Sorry for freaking out on you guys earlier like that, I guess I just lost control."

Sirius smirked, "You could say that. Seriously though, James, its fine. That's what we're here for."

Remus nodded, "We would have been more worried if you weren't showing any emotion at all James. It's completely understandable. Don't worry about it."

James smiled, "Thanks. You guys are the best, really."

"Let's go see the wife to be." Sirius wiggled his eyebrows, earning an eye roll from James. The three friends started to leave the waiting room before Sirius stopped and turned around.

"My muffins!" he rushed back into the room and returned quickly, his arms full of muffins and bagels. Remus and James looked at Sirius, then at each other, then back to Sirius again.

"What?" Sirius asked.

"Nothing Padfoot, nothing..." James sighed.

They proceded to Lily's room, James shaking his head, Remus doing the same, and Sirius trying to decide if he wanted the blueberry muffin or the apple cinnamon muffin next.

* * *

I hope it was good; I've spent forever on this chapter, writing it and rewriting it over and over and over again. I tried to make it longer because for the next week or so I'm going to be doing some serious studying, that is after vacation this weekend hehe. AP tests coming up! So I'm not quite sure when my next update will be, hopefully not too long. I'll try and work on the next chapter this weekend on paper since there isn't a computer where I'm going. Have a Happy Easter and a happy spring break if you're on one! 

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE _**PLEASE **_REVIEW! It helps me so much!

- Blue Arrow


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Here it is! Way too long, I know, but I had so much stuff to do, I really should be studying right now... oh well. I've got time. This is the last chapter of this story, I really hope you've enjoyed it. Please review, maybe telling me what you liked/didn't like, how I could improve, etc. If that's too much, a simple 'hate it' or 'love it' would suffice :-) i love you guys! So, without further ado, I give you:

**Afternoon Tea**

_Chapter 5_

James sat on Lily's hospital bed, gazing down at her with a smile lighting his face. It had been 15 hours since he was told that his Lily was going to be alright. Her room now slightly resembled a flower shop; many people had called to visit Lily once the healers had given the ok. Sirius was once again down at the cafeteria to fill his never-ending stomach. Remus was out taking a walk; he had been sitting in Lily's room with James for hours. He tried to convince his best friend to come with him, but James wanted to be there when Lily awoke. As a result, James was now alone with a soundly sleeping Lily.

...A soundly sleeping Lily who just stretched her arm above her head.

Who just wriggled her toes, rubbed her eyes, and doesn't seem to be sleeping soundly anymore.

"Lily?" James asked softly, framing her face in his hands.

James watched as Lily slowly fluttered her beautiful emerald green eyes open.

"James." She smiled at him, then grimaced in pain when she tried to sit up.

"Shhh... lie back down love, lie back down. Oh Lily…" James leaned close to her after lowering her gently back down onto her bed. His eyes were filled with tears as he kissed his love gently on her forehead, then took her hand in both of his and kissed each finger with care.

"James, I'm in St. Mungo's, aren't I?"

James nodded, smiling softly at her.

"How long have I been asleep?"

"A little less than two days."

"_Two days?_ Merlin, what _happened_ to me?"

James sighed and closed his eyes for a brief moment before telling Lily to scoot over some. He lied down next to her facing her on his side, placing an arm on her waist.

"You remember Voldemort?"

Lily nodded slowly, then spoke.

"I remember dueling with him; he hit me with a curse… all I remember is a lot of pain, then I think I blacked out."

"You did. I don't want to relive the details of the battle right now; I'll tell you later if you want. Long story short, the Order came and saved the day.Sirius took you on his broom to St. Mungo's, Dumbledore took me on his. We were both in pretty bad shape when we got here. I woke up after about 4 hours. Voldemort had used _Serpensortia_ and I wasn't quick enough to evade the bite."

Lily gasped, her hand flying to her mouth.

"But James, those are so poisonous! If the Order hadn't gotten there when they did, you could have… Oh James!"

She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his chest. He held her close to him, stroking her hair.

"Shhh, it's ok now, we're both ok, everything's alright." James whispered into her hair.

There was a light knock on the door followed by Remus entering.

"Lily!"

Remus rushed over to her. James sat up so there was enough room for Remus to sit on the edge of the bed. He gently sat down and held Lily's other hand.

"How are you feeling?"

"Surprisingly tired, after sleeping for so long. Other than a few aches and pains though, I'm brilliant."

"Good." Remus smiled.

"Is Sirius here?"

"Yeah, he's stuffing his face in the cafeteria." James answered.

Lily laughed, "Typical."

"I'm so glad you're awake -"

"LILYKINS!" interrupted a new voice from the doorway.

"Hey Sirius."

"You're finally awake!"

"Yep."

Sirius strode closer to the bed and Remus and James scooted over to make room for him.

"How are you doing?"

"I'm ok." Lily replied with a smile.

"Do you have any idea what you put us through?" Sirius asked, suddenly quite serious.

"I'm sorry," Lily answered quietly.

"I mean, not only did we have to worry about you, but we had to take care of James too! Do you know how hard he is to handle when you're not around? Bloke can't even feed himself properly! I haven't ever seen anyone go so long without nourishment- I had to practically force food down his throat!"

Remus rolled his eyes and James scoffed, saying, "That's _not_ true!"

"It is so Jamsie!"

"It is not!"

"Yes it is!"

"No it isn't!"

"Is!"

"Isn't!" James shot a hard glare at his best friend. Sirius then decided to end the conversation on his note.

"Yeah, whatever Prongsie, if that's what you want to think, that's ok, we all know what really happened. What's so funny Lily flower?"

For Lily had been shaking silently with repressed laughter since James and Sirius had started their little spat. Her eyes, watery from tears of mirth, now were glaring viciously in Sirius's direction.

"_Don't_ call me that Sirius. And it's you two! How old are you guys?"

"I believe they're both twenty years of age Lily, although sometimes I do wonder…" Remus answered wearily.

"I rather think Lily is suggesting that you and I, James, are immature for our age. Am I correct in inferring this, Lillian?"

"Yes, Sirius, you are. Now if you would kindly leave the room and find a healer, I would greatly appreciate it. I'm starving, and I want to know what I can eat and when I can get out of here."

"I'm on it Lil's."

"Thanks Sir."

Sirius bounded out of the room to complete Lily's request after a quick nod of the head. Remus, sensing that James and Lily might want a few more moments alone, followed. As the door closed, Lily turned her attention to James as he lay back down next to her on the bed, wrapping his arm around her.

"I can't believe we made it out alive." Lily stated.

James nodded, "There were a couple of times when I thought we were dead for sure. Thank Merlin I had the mirror with me; if it wasn't for Sirius…"

"I know."

They lied in comfortable silence for a few moments before Lily broke it again.

"James?"

"Hmm?"

"What do you think Voldemort wanted from us?"

James was silent for a moment, then sighed heavily before turning to face Lily more directly.

"He wanted me, Lily. He's trying to get into Hogwarts and he needed information that I had."

Lily nodded and James continued.

"There's more. While you were asleep, Dumbledore paid a little visit. He said that The Order had come across some new information and that you and I could be in the center of it.They don't know muchyet, but especially considering the reason we're here right now, we need to be even more careful than we have been. I'm going to start carrying my invisibility cloak everywhere with me. I should have had it when we were in the forest. Then maybe you wouldn't have-"

"James. It's not you're fault."

"Lily, you could have been killed. You were almost killed. It was because he wanted me. And now this new information from Dumbledore… we're in so much danger, Lily. It's starting to get scary. It has been for awhile, but this… I don't know how I could live with myself if something happened to you. Lily, are you sure you still want to get-"

"Stop. Stop right there, James Potter. How could you even suggest such a thing?"

"I just thought that maybe you-"

"No, James. You thought wrong. I am quite aware of the danger we are in right now and the fact that it might increase considerably once we're married. But as you saw twenty minutes ago, when I woke up and saw you I didn't recoil and tell you to never come near me again because you were a threat to my life. I still love you James, you were not at fault for anything that happened that night. Think. The portkey was my chair, was it not? If they wanted only you, they would have charmed _your_ chair. I am in danger with or without you. And, frankly, I would rather it be _with_ you. I want no one else to go through this with, James. No one."

James, unable to speak, just wrapped Lily in his arms and held onto her more tightly than he had ever done before. She held back just as hard.

"Promise me you'll never think that again."

James squeezed her closer still. "I promise." He whispered huskily into her hair.

"Good." Lily replied. She pulled back from the tight grip James had her in and gently brushed her lips against his. He moaned slightly and deepened the kiss, keeping one hand around her waist and moving the other to the side of her face. Soon, the need for air overtook them and they broke apart breathing heavily. James rested his forehead on hers.

"I love you." He whispered.

Lily smiled, "I love you too." She gave him a short, but rather gratifying kiss.

The door burst open, startling Lily and James.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but I brought food, Lily!"

James sat up and acknowledged Sirius with a nod.

"The healer said that you could have whatever you wish to, but advises for you to stay closer to bland foods and to take it slow. She said something about your digestive system having to get used to food again since you've gone so long without it. Anyway, I got some bagels for you."

"Thanks Sirius." Lily said, taking the plain bagel from his outstretched hand. "Did she say when I could go home?"

"She said after an examination to make certain that you're ok, you will be sent home."

"Home." Lily said with a sigh and a smile. She suddenly sat bolt upright, despite the pain, her eyes wide.

"Lily! What's wrong?"

"James! The dishes! We never washed the dishes after dinner that night! They've been sitting there this entire time! Oh no… we're going to go home to this horrid smelling house with Merlin knows what living in the kitchen, and-"

"Lily. Lie back down. It's ok. Remus left a little bit ago to make sure the house was ready for you; he knew you wouldn'tlet yourself restif the house was dirty." Sirius explained to Lily calmly.

"Oh. Ok." Lily lay back down, visibly relaxed. She glared at James, who was trying to stifle his laughter but failing miserably.

"What's so funny?"

"You! You've beenunconscious for two days after a duel with the most powerful dark wizard that ever lived, and you're worrying about dirty dishes?"

Lily blushed and began to say a retort but thought better of it, instead letting a smilepeak through.

"I suppose that is one of the last things I should be worrying about, isn't it?"

"I dunno, Lil. Dirty dishes can be pretty dangerous." Sirius smirked.

"Shut up, you."

* * *

"I'm fine James. I can walk on my own."

"I know, but that doesn't stop me from wanting to help you anyway."

Lily rolled her eyes and sighed. Secretly she loved how James was letting her lean on him while they walked up the pathway to their house. She wanted to appear independent, because she _was_ a very independent witch, but she just loved the feeling of James's arm around her waist, supporting her.

"We're home." James murmured into her hair as he opened their front door.

"Thank Merlin. I get to sleep in my own bed!"

James laughed softly and followed his Lily upstairs. Watching her looking around their home, excited at how well Remus had cleaned everything (He even dusted, James! Why don't you ever dust?) filled him with an enormous amount of joy and love. He had learned from the past two days how much Lily really, truly meant to him. How much he loved her antics, her little imperfections. He made a promise to himself right there that he would do everything in his power to keep her from harm.

Lily, satisfied that everything in her site was spotless, moved to their bedroom. She pulled the covers back on their bed and snuggled underneath them.

"Lily… you are aware that it isn't even dark out yet?"

"Of course I am. I'm just tired, those hospital beds are horrible."

James smiled and said ok, leaving the room to go downstairs.

"James?"

James turned back around and looked at his fiancé.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think tomorrow we could have Remus and Sirius over for dinner or something? I want to thank them for all that they've donefor us the past few days."

"Sure love, that's fine, as long as you feel well enough to cook."

"I will, and I never said you wouldn't be helping." Lily said, smirking.

"In that case… maybe they shouldn't come over for dinner…"

Lily laughed and James started to go downstairs again when she said his name once more.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Could you lay downwith me until I fall asleep?" She asked in a small voice.

James's eyes softened and he walked over to their bed, taking his shoes off along the way. He got underneath the covers, placed an arm around Lily's waist and pulled her up to him so her back was against his chest. Lily grabbed his hand and held onto it, immediately starting to drift off to sleep.

"I love you James." She whispered softly just before slipping into slumber.

"I love you too, Lily. Always." He murmured, kissing her hair. He watched her sleep until the sky grew dark,loving each breath that she took. As night grew, he too closed his eyes and dozed off to sleep.

* * *

So, _**finally**_, there it is. It took way longer than expected, and I'm really sorry. I hope it was worth it becauseI would hate to end this story on a bad note. Please, please, please review, I really love getting reviews! Again, hope you liked it. 

Blue Arrow


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